Indexed card system



L. A. WERNERY.

INDEXED CARD SYSTEM.

APPLICATION FILED JAN 17, 1917.

1 33 4 I Patenjted July 5, 1921..

WITNESS ES:

MGM

PATEN OFFI E.

LESTER A. WERNERY, or BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR v v STICKNEY, or mrzannm, new JERSEY.-

TO BUIQNHAM C.

INDEXED CARD SYSTEM r I Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 5, 1921.

Application filed January 17, 1917. Seria1N0.1.42,79 2.

This invention relates 'to the construction and assemblage of stacking of small and large cards or sheets psed for card-indexing, bookkeeping and other purposes.

In such card index systems, it has been the practice to make the cards uniform, and to stack a great number of them in a tray,

- and then to thumb over the cards in searching for a desired one; the index line upon all of the cards except the front one being of course'hidden.

One of the main objects of my invention is to overcome this difliculty, and to' this end I make the cards of a form such that when they are placed or fitted in the receptacle, or tray, their index lines are all visible, at least to an extent to render it unnecessary to thumb them over. According to my invention, the cards are so placed that the index lines or legends thereon are all visible, because of a steppedvarrangementof the index portions of the-cards, whereby each rear card surmounts the card in front of it, or is in echelon arrangement with respect thereto.

It is not essential to arrange all of the cards of a large system in a single stepped bank, but the stack maybe divided into'a series of stepped banks placed one behind another, the upper cards in each bank having thelr indexes always in slght, and the 40 bottom cards in each rea'r bank being readily I brought into view by canting the entire bank back.

The preferred manner of securing the stepped arrangement of the cards is to form the cards with shoulders upon their opposite sides, and to rest these shoulders upon ledges withwhich thereceptacle or tray is provided. In each bank, the top of thenext card from the frontiis at a greater elevation above its shoulders than is the front card; the top of the next rear card is at a still greater elevation, and so on throughout the bank, so that, whenthe shoulders rest upon the ledge, the cards will surmount one another, thereby rendering the indexesall visible,

Preferably, for compactness, when the cards are out of use, the ledges are rendered detachable, so that the cards may be dropped compactly within the tray. Upon re-inserting the ledges, the cards may be restored to their echelon or stepped arrangement.

It will be understood that whenever any card is removed, a gap is left in the bank, thus enabling the user to re-locate the card when restoring it to the bank, without the necessity of thumbing the cards over as heretofore, to find the proper place for returning the card.

In one form of the inventiomthe cards are provided intheir bottom portions with vertical slots,whereby the cards are set upon ledges which are spaced from the sidesof the tray, these slots being of varying heights to secure visibility. the cards being, moreover, provided with extra slots, for use when it is desired to restore to the stack, but in dislocated position, a card that has been that all the cards that have been used during the day may be readily ascertained, as they]; will all stand in offset relation to the stac just written upon; so'

of the indexes thereon, and

Other features and advantages will hereinafter appear.

In the accompanying drawings,

Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation showing, thatif desired, the cards may be thrown down from their stepwise or visible arrange ment, and'packed closely into a receptacle,

for the purpose of storage.

Fig. 2 is a perspective to illustrate one manner in which the cards may rest upon ledges, the cards surmounting one another to make the legends thereon visible.

Fig. 3' is a front sectional view of the pre ferred form of receptacle or tray, showing a bank orascent of cards in stepped arrange- -ment therein.

invention, illustrating how some cards may Fig. 4 is 'a view of another form of the be displaced laterally relatively to the stack.

Fig. 5 is a sectional front elevation, showing the parts packed for-storage as at Fig. 1, and showing the detachable form of ledges for supporting the cards.

Fig. 6 shows the cards dropped for compactne ss in storing; these cards being of the form seen imFig; 4, and the supporting ledges having been withdrawn to permit the cards to drop preparatory to restoring the laterally displaced cards to their proper po- ,sitions' in the pack or'stack. I

Referring to Figs, 1, 2', 3 and 5, each card 10 has upon its opposite side edges a cut- 5-away11, thereby forming shoulders 12, to support the card upon opposite ledges 13. The ledges are preferably of solid form, to guard against disarrang'ement of the cards, and the cards preferably fit very closely between or in contact with said ledges for the same purpose. At Fig. 2,-it will be seen that the upper edgeof the first card 10 rises sufiiciently above the card receptacle 14: to render visiblean index or other legend wr tten or printed along the top of the card; and

that the top of the sedond card 15 extends higher above its shoulders 12 than does the topof the first card 10, so that-the second card may surmount or stand in stepped relation to the first, so'as to render visible the legend that runs along the top of said card15; and that the tops of the. succeeding cards 16, 17, 18 and 19 stand progressively higher above their shoulders, making a general stepped or echelon arrangement, each rear card surmounting the one in front of it, so that all the legends onv all the cards are in 'sightand therefore easily read. 7

These cards 10-19 form a bank' or ascent 20, which combines withsimilar banks 2122 to form a complete setv or stack of cards which may fill the receptacle, al-

' though if desired they may be divided among a number of receptacles, if there are very many cards in the set. The receptacle need not be entirely filled, as it is preferable to permit the rear banks to be canted backwar'dly for convenience'in reading the same,

It will be seen that a very large quantity 40 cof index cards can be contained in a comparatively small receptacle and with all of the indexes or legends constantly visible,

thus'saving trouble and delay heretofore experienced in, thumbing over the cards in order to find a desired one, because all of the writing on each card was hidden by the card in front of it.

/ A further advantage-is gained in that whenever any card is withdrawn-for the purpose of entering an item thereon','it leaves a gap'in the bank of cards, said gap being very noticeable, so that when" desiring to return the card to the stack, the user simply places it in said, gap, and is'not first obliged, as heretofore, to thumb over the cards. to

find the proper place for its reinsertion.

Theledges 13 may be fixed portions of the receptacle, if desired, but preferably they are removable, to permit the cards, when outof use, to drop to the positions at Figs. 1 and 5, whereby compactness is secured, or convenience in storage. In order )to .remove said ledges, they are preferably. erected upon a single base 23, upon which t6 the receptacle or tray It may rest. These ieeaee a ledges may bethrust up within the boxor receptacle, as at Figs. 2 and 3, thus bringing the cards to their echelon or stepped condition. When the cards are no longer to be 'used, the base 23 maybe withdrawn, to-

gether with the ledges 13, whereupon the cardsmay be dropped to the compact condition at F igs. 1 and 5. The ledges'13' pref erably extend the entire length from front to rear of thetray, and may enter the same through suitable, apertures 24 in its bottom.

In some instances, the feature of with- ,drawing the ledges may be omitted, and .they may remain fixed permanently in the tray, without sacrificing'the feature of visibility secured by the echelon arrangement of the cards; and is not essential in all cases that the ledges, when used, shall have the form shown, nor a horizontal arrangement. In this and other features, variations 'may be. resortedto within the scope of the inventio'n.- While T have described the cards as shouldered on their opposite side edges, 1 and as having legends upon their top edges, still the invention includes cards otherwise shouldered and otherwise provided with ledges, so long as the echelon feature is provided.

In the cards may be provided at their lower portions each with four notches or vertical slots 25, open-at their lower ends; their upperends 26 serving as shoulders to rest upon ledges 27, arranged within the receptacle and spaced from the sides thereof. The slots 25 are of varying heights, or in other words, the tops of the, cards are at various distances from the upper edges 26 of said slots,

form shown at Figs. 4c and t3, the.

' so as to produce a stepped or echelon effect.-

The ledges 27 may be fixed upon a base 28 and inserted in slots 29 in the bottom of the tray, although saidledges 27 may be fixed, if desired, without provision for withdrawal. 1

It will be seen that the cards may have either the side shoulders 12 or the intermediate shoulders 26; the side shoulders 12 being at the lower portion of the card, but this would not prove an objection .in many instances, especially where the cards-are very large, as is often the case where bookkeeping systems involve the use of large cards or sheets, on which the bookkeeping entries are directly written from time to time.

A further advantage may be gained from the use'of .the form of the invention seen at Fig.- 4, since any card may be offset from the stack, asseen at 30and 31. ,This proves a great convenience, especially where the number of cards in the stack is very great, since the bookkee er or user, after withdrawing a ard. for it g an entry thereon, y ref the card.

cardmay be set upon ledges 27 in'either the left-hand or the right-hand position at Fig. 4, whereby the desired offset relation may be readily. secured. If it is not desired to oii'set any cards, there need be only as many slots 25 as there are ledges 27 p f As will be understood from Figs. 1 and 3, the highest-card has no: cutaway, its. shoulgers being coincident with the bottom edge Variations may be resorted to withinthe scope of the invention, and portionsof the im rovements may be used wlthout others. I

aving thus described my invention, I claim: I 1 1. In combination, a bank of self-finding cards, each having a heading alolfg one-edge, the cards provided with supporting or locating means in the form of shoulders at a va riety of distances from said heading, each. card having its locating means at only a single distance from said heading, to render the card self-locating relatively to the remaining cards,and the single locating means upon each card being ata different position from the locating means upon the remaining cards, to enable the cards to locate themselves to show said headings in stepped or echelon arrangement as they are banked, and .a common support u on which said cards are so banked normal y.

2. A set of index cards of graduated forms, each being provided with a single pair of opposite supporting shoulders, the top of each card being /located at a different height above-the shoulders, aScompared with the remaining cards, to render the cards self-locating and thereby produce overlapping relation of the assembled, cards.

.tray, of a stack of index cards removably 3. A bank of index cards .01? graduated forms, to combine, with like banlis to form a set or stack, saidbank comprising-cards each having a single pair of shoulders upon its opposite edges to render the card selflocatmg, and the tops of the cards being formed progressively higher above a the shoulders, from front to rear of the bank, so that when the shoulders'are alined, matter written or printed on the tops of all the cards are visible.

4. The combination with a receptacle or fitted thereto and having headings, said cards and said receptacle having parts c0- operating to give said headings on the various cards,a stepped arrangement, to render all of the headings visible, said cooperating parts including a rest upon the receptacle,

andlocating means in the form of'shoulders.

upon the cards, each card having a single locating means to render it self-locating, and said rest being. constructed to permit the free insertion of said card in the receptacle until said locating means comes to a stop upon said rest.

5. In combination, a bank of cards of equal height and each having a heading along one edge, the cards provided with supporting or locating shoulders at a variety of distances from said heading, and means movable to cooperate with said shoulders to bring the banked cards into stepped or ec'he lon arrangementat will.

6. In combination, a tray, set of index cards fitted therein and each provided with a smgle pair of opposite supporting shoulders to render the card self-locating, the

tops of the cards being located at a variety of heightsabove the shoulders, to produce overlapping relation of the assembled cards, and said tray having ledges upon which the shoulders rest and between which may freely portions of the cards below said pass the shoulders.

7. The combination of banks. of index cards forming a set or stack, each bank com prising cards having shoulders on their opposite edges, the tops of the cards being progressiyely. higherabove the shoulders, from front to rear of the bank, and supports to engage said shoulders,,said supports movable out of effective positions.

8. The combination with a stack of-index cards comprising banks of cards having shoulders or supports, the tops of the cards being progressively higher above the sup ports from front to rear of each bankfof a tray provided with means to divide said stack at will into banks one behind another,

with the cards in each bank arranged in echelon, each card higher than the one. in front of it. r

9. In combination, a stack of index cards to stand one behind another, the cards provided with shoulders at their opposite SldGS,

the shoulders on successive cards being -progressively lower proceeding from front to rear, and a common support for the shoul-.

dersat each side of the stack, movable to bring the cards into an echelon arrangement.

10. The combinationwith a set of cards of graduated forms and provided withindex portions, of a receptacle to contain said cards. said receptacle havinga support mo'vable to cooperate with said cards, because of their graduated forms, too raise thelcards into a stepped arrangement and thereby I render all of the index portions visible.

11. The combination-with a receptacle or 1130 tray, of a s ack of index cards. removably fitted. thereto and having? headings, said cards and said receptacle having parts cooperating to give said headings on the various'cardsa stepped arrangement, to render all of the headings visible, said coop.-

erating parts including means movable out of working position to permit a compacting movement of the cards. A a

1 2. The combination with .a receptacle provided'with opposite interior ledges, of a stack of index cards-to stand one behind another, the cards provided with shoulders at their opposite sides to rest upon said ledges, the shoulders and the ledges being so 19 related as to bring the cards into echelon arrangement, to permit the reading of matter vappearing upon the upper edges of the cards; said ledgesbeing movable out of ef-' fective positions.

13. The combination with a receptacle provided with opposite interior ledges, of a stack of index cards to stand one behind another, the cardsprovided with shoulders at their opposite sides to rest 'uponsaid,

ledges, the shoulders on successive cards formed .at progressively differing elevations, to bring the cards into echelon arrangement when supported by said shoulders upon said ledges, and a base upon which sfald ledges are fixed; said receptacle'hav- 1ng bottom openings through which the ledges may be withdrawn.

14. A card tray having card-supporting ledges upon opposite sides, said ledges being fixed upon a removablebase upcn which the tray rests.

15. Tn combination, a bank of self-finding cards, each having a heading along one edge,

the cards provided with supporting or 10- catmg means in the form ofshoulders at a variety of distances from said heading, each card having its locating means at only a 4 single distance from said heading, to render the card self-locating relatively to the remaining cards, and the single locating'means upon each card being at a difierent position from the locating means upon the remaining 'cards, to enable the'cards to locatethemselves to show said headings in stepped or echelon arrangement as they are banked,

and a common support upon which 'said cards are .so banked normally, each of said cards being removable independently ofsaid common support and of the remaining cards.

16.1%. set of index cards of graduatedforms, each being provided with a single pair of opposite supporting shoulders,the top of each card being located at a difierent height above the. shoulders, as comparedv with the remaining cards, to render the cards self-locating and thereby produce overlapping relation of the assembled cards, and a common supporting means for all of said cards, each of said cards being removable independently of said common supporting means and of the remaining cards.

17. A. bank of index cards of graduated forms, to combine with like banks to form a set or stack, said bank comprising. cards,

18. The combination with a set of cards having graduated forms, of a receptacle to contain said cards, said receptacle having supporting means movable to cooperate with said cards, because of their graduated forms, to raise the cards into a stepped arrangement and thereby render all of the index portions visible, each card being removable from said receptacle independently of said supporting means and of the remaining cards.

. LESTER A. WERNERYI Witnesses:

i CATHERINE A Nnwnnt,

JENNIE P. Tnonnn. 

